Pictures lost—counterfeit SanDisk 8GB Extreme III card

A few hours worth of shooting are now in digital heaven thanks to a counterfeit SanDisk 8GB Extreme III card which failed and won’t read in two cameras or a card reader (I purchased it at amazon.com Nov 2, 2006 from seller grimesrh@gmail.com).

At least I suspect it strongly of being counterfeit. The card arrived in what looked like legitimate packaging, complete with all the usual literature, plastic packaging, etc. Here’s why I believe it to be counterfeit:

1. no edge code (on any of the 4 edges);
2. “ESP” logo on the right instead of on the left (see the SanDisk site for a picture of a legit card)
3. no “do not trash” logo on the back label;
4. different material; looks like cheaper plastic and cheaper pressed metal;
5. squared-off metal corners vs rounded ones on the rear; different sized “CE” log, etc.

Am I wrong? On Monday, I’ll call SanDisk for confirmation, but the lack of an edge code (I checked all 4 edges) means that my chances are slim. In retrospect, I was foolish to dismiss the slight cosmetic differences. If it turns out that the card is legitimate, I’ll of course post that in this blog.

Legitimate card (left), Counterfeit card (right)

Legitimate card (left), Counterfeit card (right)

Legitimate card (left), Counterfeit card (right)

I’ve filed a claim with the seller, and we’ll see how he responds—amazon has no choice for “counterfeit item” in its claim handling form. Amazon.com will not even consider its seller protection policy unless the buyer first deals with the seller—OK for legitimate sellers, but not so in cases like this. That’s like having to negotiate with the burglar to get your stolen goods back before the police will take action—and it makes me think more carefully about amazon.com—I thought this sort of thing was an ebay trap only. The card was somewhat cheaper, but it wasn’t at a large discount to other vendors. Live and learn.